Portland Trail Blazers Tickets

Rip City's franchise in brief

The Portland Trail Blazers play home games at Moda Center in the Rose Quarter, across the Willamette River from downtown Portland, and the NBA regular season there runs from October into April. The team joined the league in 1970 as an expansion franchise, alongside the Cleveland Cavaliers and Buffalo Braves, after founder Harry Glickman had spent years pursuing an NBA team for the city. The name came from a public contest that drew more than 10,000 entries.

Portland has one NBA championship, won in 1977 with Bill Walton, who was named Finals MVP that year and league MVP the next. The team returned to the NBA Finals in 1990 and 1992 during the Clyde Drexler era. Few franchises have been as consistent at reaching the postseason: the Blazers made the playoffs 21 straight seasons from 1983 to 2003, and they rank behind only the Lakers, Celtics and Spurs in total playoff appearances.

The city's basketball nickname, Rip City, traces to the team's first season. Broadcaster Bill Schonely called it out when guard Jim Barnett sank a long shot against the Lakers, and the phrase stuck to the franchise and the city. Since the Seattle SuperSonics moved to Oklahoma City in 2008, the Blazers have been the only NBA team in the Pacific Northwest, which widens the fan base across Oregon and southwest Washington.

Where to sit for a Blazers game at Moda Center

Moda Center opened in 1995 as the Rose Garden and took its current name in 2013. It seats 19,393 for basketball across three public levels: the 100 level (the lower bowl wrapping the court), the 200 level (club seating with premium amenities) and the 300 level (the upper bowl). Each level trades distance for price in a predictable way.

• Courtside and the first rows of the 100 level. The closest view of the game and the highest demand. Floor-level seats put you at eye level with the players, which is exciting but flattens your view of plays on the far side of the court.
• 100-level sideline, middle rows. For most fans this is the best basketball seat in the building. A few rows of elevation let you see spacing and the whole floor, and you stay close enough to hear the game.
• 100-level behind the baskets. Usually less expensive than the sideline at the same distance. The view of the near basket is excellent and depth perception at the far end is poor; the stanchion and the backboard can block low rows directly behind the hoop.
• 200 level. Club seating with a raised, centered perspective and less crowded concourses. A good choice for a business outing or anyone who values amenities over proximity.
• 300 level. The value tier. Sideline sections in the lower rows of the 300 level give a full view of the floor at a fraction of the lower-bowl cost; the top rows behind the baskets are the seats to skip unless price is the only factor.

Aisle seats in the lower bowl are worth a small premium on a busy night, since concourse trips during play mean waiting at the section entrance for a stoppage.

Schedule shape and the games that draw the biggest crowds

The NBA calendar follows a set rhythm. A handful of preseason games come in early October, the 82-game regular season runs from late October into mid-April, and the playoffs fill late April through June. Portland plays 41 home games a year, spread across weeknights and weekends.

Demand for a given game depends on four things, and they compound:

• The opponent. Visits from the Lakers, the Warriors and other teams with national stars draw traveling fans and casual buyers, so listings tighten first for those dates.
• The day of the week. Friday and Saturday games sell faster than Monday or Tuesday games against the same opponent.
• Holidays and promotions. Games around the winter holidays and giveaway nights tend to fill earlier.
• The standings. A late-season push toward the postseason lifts demand quickly, and a home playoff game is the hardest ticket of the year.

For the widest choice of seats, midweek games against Eastern Conference opponents usually offer the most inventory. Prices on the resale market tend to soften in the final days before a lower-demand game and climb for marquee matchups as tip-off approaches.

Getting to the Rose Quarter and getting in

Transit is the simplest way to reach Moda Center. Three MAX light rail lines, the Blue, Green and Red, stop at the Rose Quarter Transit Center next to the arena, and the Yellow Line serves the nearby Interstate/Rose Quarter station. Several TriMet bus lines also stop at the transit center. Driving is workable: the Rose Quarter lists four garages (Garden, Annex, West Broadway and East Broadway) plus a small surface lot, shared with Veterans Memorial Coliseum next door. Rideshare pickup is along NE Multnomah Street and NE Wheeler Avenue outside the east entry.

As of fall 2026, the arena's published rules for basketball allow bags up to about 10 by 6 by 2 inches, and those bags go through secondary screening. Tickets are mobile only through the team and arena app, and screenshots are not accepted. Doors for Blazers regular-season games have opened 75 minutes before tip-off. Policies change, so check the Rose Quarter visitor guide before you go.

Gameday culture and road trips

Portland's crowd has a long reputation for noise and loyalty. From April 1977 until the move out of Memorial Coliseum in 1995, the Blazers sold out 814 consecutive home games, the longest such streak in American major professional sports at the time. That era is the root of what locals still call Blazermania, and red and black remain the dominant colors in the stands. Blaze the Trail Cat, a silver mountain lion, has been the mascot since 2002.

The Rose Quarter is not a tailgating district in the football sense. Most fans meet for food and drinks downtown, in the Lloyd District just east of the arena, or along the bars on the east side of the river before heading over. Allow extra time on game nights when another event is scheduled at the Coliseum, since the two buildings share the garages and the transit center.

For road games, the closest trips for Portland fans are to Sacramento and the Bay Area. A trip to Sacramento's Golden 1 Center or San Francisco's Chase Center is a common way to see the team away from home within a day's drive or a short flight.

History and notable moments

The Blazers spent their first 25 seasons at Memorial Coliseum before moving into the Rose Garden in 1995. Paul Allen bought the team in 1988 and owned it until his death in 2018; his estate later sold the franchise, and the sale to a group led by Tom Dundon was reported in 2025. The City of Portland now owns the arena and the surrounding Rose Quarter property, and a five-year bridge lease approved in 2024 keeps the team at Moda Center while longer-term renovation plans are worked out.

• 1977: Portland won its only NBA title in its seventh season.
• 1990 and 1992: Drexler's teams reached the Finals twice.
• 2000: The Blazers led the Lakers by 15 points in the fourth quarter of Game 7 of the Western Conference Finals before a 25–4 run ended their season.

The franchise has retired 12 numbers, including 77, which honors coach Jack Ramsay and the 1977 championship rather than a player. Hall of Famers who played in Portland include Walton, Drexler, Scottie Pippen, Arvydas Sabonis and Drazen Petrovic.

Sources

• Wikipedia – Portland Trail Blazers
• Wikipedia – Moda Center
• Rose Quarter – Plan Your Visit
• Rose Quarter – Directions and Transportation
• NBC16 – Where did Rip City come from?
• Rose Garden Report – City Council approves Blazers bridge lease